Page 199

2

According to Spanish newspaper Marca, Real Madrid’ coach Zinedine Zidane will meet with Real’ president Florentino Pérez and with Real’ CEO José Ángel Sánchez next week to plan the team of next season.

There is one player whose name we will be listening all the summer: Paul Pogba. He’s an express request of Zidane, who has been looking at him those years like he did with Varane and Hazard. In fact, Real bought Varane because French coach recommended him and he also recommended Belgian player when he was yet in Lille.

The problem is the excessive price of French midfielder. Juventus demand €140 million and Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola also requires €20 million as commission. Furthermore, although their relationship is fluid, the Italian champion has always been a very tough negotiator. We must remember Zidane’ transfer to Real from Juve in 2001 set a record price (€75 million) until Real bought Cristiano Ronaldo (€94 million).

They will also talk about two important players who have lost protagonism in the team: Isco and James. Few weeks ago, ‘Zizou’ said “Isco is our player and he doesn’t move” but he will have to convince Real executives because of the overbooking of midfielders. The same situation with James. His performance was worse than Isco’s season but he’s playing very well in the Copa América and it looks the club trust him.

In the other hand, alternate players like Mateo Kovacic, Nacho Fernández, Jesé Rodríguez and even Martin Odegaard, are waiting to know their future. A lot of clubs want them and they will have to decide if they sell as transfered or as loaned, although Jesé and Odegaard are the most options have to be loaned. Now, only Cheryshev’ transfer is resolved (to Villarreal).

Finally, they also must decide what to do with players who come back after a year loaned like Marco Asensio, Diego Llorente, Fabio Coentrao, Burgui. For now, it looks Asensio is only the player who will participate in the pre-season with the first team in Canada and USA.

0

Real Madrid is interested in signing again Álvaro Morata, Juventus and Spain national team forward, but now it looks he is only concentrated in the EURO.

He was interviewed by Iberdrola, one of the big sponsors of national team. He was asked about his future but he said “I don’t think about it. I can’t spend all day pending phone. I’m not even interested in it now. I’ll have time to think when I finish the EURO”.

It’s not official yet, but according to Spanish radio Cadena Cope, few days ago Real’ intention was resign Morata for €30 million to sell to any other team which is interested in him for €60 million, but now they want to resign him to keep as one player more for next season, despite they have offers of €80 million.

Ex-mates like Lucas Vázquez said “I wish Real signed back Morata to keep him”. Another ex-mates like Andrea Pirlo, former Juventus midfielder, who now is playing in New York City and was interviewed by Cadena Cope on 17th June, said “we wish Morata stay in Juventus but Real decide it”.

He was also asked about the national team, which will play against Turkey at 20:00 on 17th June. “We are a dangerous team if we have spaces so they will play like Czech Republic. We must be careful against Turkey because they have very important players like Arda Turan or Calanohglu. I think we will still have the possession”.

Spain won the first match against Czech Republic but they won 1-0 thanks to Piqué, who scored in the minute 87. If they win against Turkey, they will go to the second round and they will be able to play against Croatia with alternate players.

0

Real Madrid players have a black and white season in 2015/16. Luckily, everything ended up in the Champions League trophy but it was a tough season for all the players. Some of them arrived last July with a big question mark about his performance but showed they are able to wear the Real Madrid t-shirt and win titles for the club.

Keylor Navas

The goalkeeper is the most difficult position in the pitch. And Keylor Navas has the challenge to replace Iker Casillas, a myth for a lot of fans. We could early know that the Costa Rican was the right person for the position. He saved a lot of points in the very first games and was the best players in the pitch.

He had to get over a difficult situation this summer when Real Madrid wanted to exchange Keylor Navas and David de Gea. This situation didn’t affect the goalie and he was one of the best man in the Champions League competition.

Lucas Vázquez

The youngster arrived to Real Madrid after a season on loan in Espanyol. He played a lot of games early in the season and had all Benítez’s confidence. However, when the Spaniard was sacked it seemed that Vázquez won’t have the same chances with Zidane.

We were wrong. The 24-year-old started playing again and was even in the line up for the first leg in the Champions League semifinal against Manchester City. He ended up playing 25 games in la Liga, scoring 4 goals in this competition and even scoring a penalty kick in the Champions League final. He’s playing the Euro with Spain. Better, impossible.

Casemiro

Casemiro came back from a loan as well as Lucas Vázquez. The Brazilian had more experience as he played in Porto the Champions League last season. In Benítez’s squad he had a key player as a stopper despite being left aside in El Clásico lost 0-4 at home.

With Zidane’s arrival, Casemiro didn’t play a lot at the very beginning. The French coach wanted a more offensive team but he changed his mind and always include Casemiro in the starting eleven. He was one of the best players in the Champions League final against Atlético.

Carvajal

Carvajal performance was not a surprise. The right back played a great season with Ancelotti but this year had even more competitors for this position. Real Madrid signed in summer Danilo to play in the defence but it turned out that the best player was at home.

Zidane chose Danilo in the most important games at the beginning, including the first leg in the Champions League quarter-final against Wolfsburg. Luckily, he changed his mind and Carvajal earned his position in the line up. Unfortunately, he missed the Euro due to an injury.

0

Real Madrid wing Lucas Vázquez, who is concentrated with Spanish national team in France playing EURO 2016, has been interviewed by the Spanish radio Cadena Cope and he talked about a lot of things related to Real.

Initially Real’ intention was resigning Morata for €30 million to sell to any other team which were interested in him for €60 million, but according to Cadena Cope, despite they have received offers around €80 million, now Real pretend to resign Morata to keep him, because the another forward Jesé Rodríguez will leave on loan.

Lucas was asked about this possibility and he said “I wish Real signed Morata again to keep him. He has played two years at very good level and if Real want him it will be good for everybody”.

In the other hand, Lucas said about Jesé “if he will be loaned, I wish him the best”. One of the teams which is interested in Jesé is Espanyol, the another club of Catalunya where Lucas Vázquez was playing loaned during the season 2014/15. That’s why Lucas said also “I’d recommend him go to Espanyol. My experience there was very good both personally and professionally”.

One of the reasosn which Jesé will leave Real is the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema, who are always starting members unless one of them is injuried. But Lucas said about them “they are three of best players of the world. It’s a pleasure playing and training with them”.

Lucas scored the first penalti in the Champions League final against Atlético de Madrid and a lot of people praised his courage. Asked if he would kick again if he plays a final with Spain, he said “if I am with the same confidence as in Milan, yes”.

Finally, asked about the possibility of winning Champions League and EURO in the same year, Lucas answered “it would be unbelievable, it would be a feat”.

0

Ricardo Rodríguez has already told Wolfsburg that he won’t play for the German side next season. The sports manager, Klaus Allofs, confirmed that the Swiss player won’t continue in Wolfsburg next season. Rodríguez’s release clause is 26 M€, an affordable number for most of the European clubs.

Rodríguez is now playing the Euro with his national team, Switzerland, and will decide his future afterwards. Some informations say that Premier League or Real Madrid could be his next move.

Real Madrid is looking for another left back because Arbeloa left the club and Coentrao is not the suitable player for this position. With Danilo and Carvajal the right wing is covered but Marcelo needs a replacement and the Swiss player could be the perfect match.

Bayern Munchen said they have closed the signing process so the only competitors Real Madrid might have are the Premier League clubs. Guardiola tried to sign Rodríguez for Bayern and he might try to get him as well for Manchester City. Manchester United and Chelsea were also interested in the past.

David Alaba was the other player suitable for the left back position at Real Madrid. However, the Austrian player is too expensive and needs an important role in the team. Right now, Marcelo is the main player in this position so Rodríguez could be the perfect replacement.

The Swiss player showed in the Champions League quarter finals against Real Madrid his value in that position. Specially in the first leg, the defender showed a great level and he was one of the key players.

0
Denis Cheryshev

It’s now official. Cheryshev returns to Villarreal after only one year in which he played for Real Madrid and Valencia. The winger has reached an agreement with the Yellow Submarine on a five-year deal.

Villarreal will pay a 10M€ transfer fee to Real Madrid but Los Blancos keep a percentage of Cheryshev’s eventual sale. This is a great opportunity for Cheryshev because he will play Champions League next season if Villarreal don’t fail to qualify to the group stage. The team finished fourth last year in an impressive season, arriving to the Europa League semi-finals as well.

Cheryshev played last year in Real Madrid until January when he moved to Valencia in the Winter transfer window. He played really well at Valencia but he suffered several injuries who kept him away from the pitch. For this reason he’s not playing the Euro with Russia and he won’t be fit to play the Champions League qualification round in August.

The Russian was very unlucky in his time at Real Madrid, especially when he played in Copa del Rey at Cádiz after been suspended with Villarreal the previous season. This situation ended up in Real Madrid being disqualified from the competition.

“We are negotiating for Denis, and I believe a deal will be closed, and we will be able to make it public soon,” Villarreal vice-president Jose Manuel Llaneza told reporters before the deal was confirmed. Obviously, this is a great signing from Villarreal, who is growing a lot in the last years.

“We come from a great season, but now that it’s over we must start again from scratch,” Llanez added. “The players who stay in the team are the reason behind what we achieved last season.”

0

Keylor Navas went to surgery this month successfully and now the goalkeeper is training and recovering at Valdebebas. He will be out of the pitch from six to eight weeks, so he should be back to begin the pre-season training by the end of July.

Navas spoke on Real Madrid official media and he was very positive about his health: “I’m completely fine, thanks God I’m recovering fine. Everything goes easy and we’re very happy”, he said according to Real Madrid website.

The Costan Rican goalkeeper was a key player for winning the 11th Champions League for Real Madrid. It was his first major European trophy: “The 11th will always be in our memories. There were really good moments. We enjoyed a lot with the family, the supporters and the club staff. We will always have this happiness of winning the 11th Champions. I want to thank God because it’s a dream come true. Since we started the season, we had the goal of winning trophies and winning the Champions League is amazing. Something someone dreams as a child. When you obtain it, it’s difficult to say word of joy and gratitude”.

Navas also spoke about the penalty shoot-out in the Champions League final: “You have to be focused, calm and confident about yourself and your colleagues. In these moments we have to be united and with confidence in your team mates skills. The colleagues made a great job scoring all five penalties and they missed one. Everything got trained. We trained the penalties shoot-out”.

Now, he’s more certain about the success of winning the Champions: “When the days goes on you realized how people enjoyed it everywhere. Real Madrid fans gathered no matter the place or the language”

The goalkeeper knows that it was a tough season: “We had hard momento during the season but we never stopped believing about what we could do. When you win a title, despite all the storms during the year, gives satisfaction and confirm your work and effort”, said Keylor Navas.

0

We can be almost certain that Mateo Kovacic won’t play at Real Madrid next season. The Croatian player didn’t have a lot of minutes this season and the club is looking for a good deal after signing him from Inter Milan last summer.

Actually, Italian clubs are the teams that have shown more interest on the midfielder. Real Madrid paid 35M€ last summer for the 22-year-old midfielder and the club doesn’t want to sell him with a cheap fee. Therefore, leave Kovacic on loan could be a great deal for both the club and the player.

In the last hours, Roma is the most likely destiny for Kovacic. Miralem Pjanic left Roma for Juventus and the giallorossi team need another player for the midfield. The Croatian could be the perfect replacement for Pjanic. Besides, Roma can also agree a loan agreement so both clubs are close to meet a deal.

Apart from Roma, there are other three Italian clubs interested in signing the Real Madrid player. One is Inter Milan but Kovacic said he would never come back to the ‘neroazzurri’ club while Mancini is the coach. Milan has also shown interest recently. However, the Berlusconi new project is uncertain yet due to his health and economic project. Besides, both Milan clubs won’t play the Champions League next year.

The fourth club interested in Kovacic is Juventus. This week the ‘Vecchia Signora’ signed Pjanic from Roma, so they have really well covered the midfield with Marchisio, Pogba or Khedira. However, Roberto Pereyra, Kwadwo Asamoah y Simone Padoin are about to leave the club and Juventus need a lot of players to face all three competitions.

0
Luka Modric

The first game in the Euro 2016 is been positive for all Real Madrid players fighting to win the competition. Especially, Gareth Bale and Luka Modric played a great game in their debut in France.

Wales played its first game in an international competition on Saturday against Slovakia. Gareth Bale was the star of the game and his performance wasn’t a disappointment at all. The Real Madrid player scored a free kick and lead his national team to the victory.

On Sunday was time for Croatia. This time, Luka Modric was the key player of the game. The midfielder scored a stunning goal in the first half with a long distance volley. He was not only the scorer of the game but the best player in the pitch. On the other hand, unfortunately, Mateo Kovacic didn’t play a minute in this game.

Later on Sunday, we saw Toni Kroos playing a great game with Germany. He was one of the best players of the game and gave the assist to Mustafi in the first goal of the game. He didn’t miss a pass and was the reference for all his team mates. Sami Khedira, former Real Madrid player, also had a good performance.

On Monday was time for Spain. Sergio Ramos was the captain because Iker Casillas was on the bench and played with Gerard Piqué as a full back. They didn’t have a lot of work because Czech Republic didn’t attack a lot but played a good game. Lucas Vázquez didn’t have the chance to make his debut.

Finally, on Tuesday was time for Cristiano Ronaldo and Pepe facing Iceland. They weren’t as lucky as their other team mates and only could draw against the weak Nordic team. Cristiano Ronaldo missed some important chances and couldn’t score. Pepe didn’t show the same level as he’s been performanced at Real Madrid.

0

With Nacho and Varane looking for offers outside of Real Madrid, the club has to think about possible replacements. The board is already working in the future and has put an eye on Mauricio Lemos, a young Uruguayan defender of Unión Deportiva Las Palmas.

Lemos could be a investment for the future because he is only 20 years old and has barely played in the top leagues. He played this season only 10 games for Las Palmas, securing a position in La Liga for the Canarian team.

The Uruguayan defender joined Rubin Kazan in summer 2015 from the Uruguayan club Defensor, but failed to nail down a starting place in the Russian league, which led to him joining UD Las Palmas on loan in January of this year.

Settling in quickly, the Canary club triggered a clause in his contract and signed him permanently for just 1.9 million euros, with a contract running until 2021.

Some big clubs have put an eye on him, including FC Barcelona. But also Real Madrid have moved quickly in the market and are set to get an agreement with the young player.

However, it’s not likely that Mauricio Lemos could arrive to Bernabéu next season because he should play more games in Las Palmas or other club. It will be a good player for the future but, right now, Real Madrid have this position really well covered.

It won’t be the first signing for the future that Real Madrid try to nail down. Recently, the club has signed Jesús Vallejo (Zaragoza) or Marco Asensio (Mallorca) and left both youngsters on loan in different clubs. The Norwegian Odegaard was also signed to play in ‘Castilla’, Real Madrid youngsters team.

www.gambleaware.co.uk or www.gamcare.org.uk
Please gamble responsibly